decrease

[ verb dih-krees; noun dee-krees, dih-krees ]

verb (used without object)

, de·creased, de·creas·ing.

1. to diminish or lessen in extent, quantity, strength, power, etc.:

   During the ten-day march across the desert their supply of water decreased rapidly.

   Synonyms: abate, contract, decline, lessen, wane

   Antonyms: expand, increase

verb (used with object)

, de·creased, de·creas·ing.

1. to make less; cause to diminish:

   to decrease one's work load.

noun

1. the act or process of decreasing; condition of being decreased; gradual reduction:

   a decrease in sales;

   a decrease in intensity.

   Synonyms: subsidence, decline, abatement

2. the amount by which a thing is lessened:

   The decrease in sales was almost 20 percent.

decrease

verb

1. to diminish or cause to diminish in size, number, strength, etc

noun

1. the act or process of diminishing; reduction
2. the amount by which something has been diminished

Derived Forms

• deˈcreasingly, adverb
• deˈcreasing, adjective

Other Words From

• unde·creased adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of decrease¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English verb decresen, from Old French decreiss-, long stem of decreistre, from Latin dēcrēscere “to diminish,” literally “to grow down,” equivalent to dē- de- + crēscere “to grow”); noun derivative of the verb; crescent

Word History and Origins

Origin of decrease¹

C14: from Old French descreistre, from Latin dēcrescere to grow less, from de- + crescere to grow

Synonym Study

Decrease, diminish, dwindle, shrink imply becoming smaller or less in amount. Decrease commonly implies a sustained reduction in stages, especially of bulk, size, volume, or quantity, often from some imperceptible cause or inherent process: The swelling decreased daily. Diminish usually implies the action of some external cause that keeps taking away: Disease caused the number of troops to diminish steadily. Dwindle implies an undesirable reduction by degrees, resulting in attenuation: His followers dwindled to a mere handful. Shrink especially implies contraction through an inherent property under specific conditions: Many fabrics shrink in hot water.

Example Sentences

Air pollution is expected to decrease in the coming days, but will remain at unhealthy levels.

From BBC

Israeli government ministers are also cited as saying that Gaza’s territory would decrease and that land would be handed to Israeli settlers.

From BBC

The decrease was due to an increase in college football rights costs, which upped the company’s production and programming spending, as well as lower affiliate revenue from fewer subscribers, the company said.

From Los Angeles Times

They said allowing apartment buildings in their neighborhoods would reduce opportunities for homeownership and decrease their quality of life by adding more traffic.

From Los Angeles Times

That could help Spotify decrease subscriber churn, increase advertising dollars and attract new customers.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• contraction
• cutback
• decline
• discount
• downturn
• loss
• reduction
• shrinkage